How do I get over stage fright and nerves???

experience. keep doing it. concentrate on the material and connecting with the audience.

I used to go to the nurses office every time I had to give a speech in my 9th grade mandatory speech class. I was so frightened!!! Of course you will hear to imagine everyone in their underwear. Won't work. People will say you will never get over it. Yes you can, to some extent, I did. You will always feel a little pang of discomfort. That will not go away.

The more you get up there, the easier it will get, but you will have to learn to use the fright adrenaline in a new way. Try to channel the energy of fear into excitement of being there. Much like an extreme sports person would do. Use the fear to your benefit because shyness and stage fright are usually ingrained so you have to re-address, analyze, and tap into it in a new way. I won't mention using valium, herbal tea, whatever. That is useless info. I've been in your shoes and sometimes you have to use some sort of placebo affect or mind over matter technique. The best info is to turn the scary, negative feelings/energy into something else that will work for you. If you can't do that, well sorry, the audience will sense the fear and tear you apart!!! Good luck. I have come a long ways from never speaking cuz of fear to actually doing something and trying to go beyond the comfort zone.

Stand up comedy and improv have a lot in common, but are very different. I'm making the exact opposite move right now - going from stand up to improv.

Both require specific skills that you have to learn to be successful. In improv, you have to accept what is given to you, keep the scene focused, and move the scene forward. When this stuff happens, the humor tends to fall into place a lot more easily. If you keep those rules in mind, the focus stays on the structure and not on the stage fright, making it easier to get on stage.

Similarly, there is a structure to stand up comedy as well. Learning how to structure your routine and learning how to structure the sets will make the writing process a lot easier. If you're more confident that your writing was good, it will be easier to face the audience.

Stage fright may never go away. I still get it after almost 3 years of performing. My nerves have helped keep me focused on what my set actually is, though. I go over it a lot, review it inside and out, and know I am ready when I hit the stage, even if I am nervous.

Once that first laugh comes, it is a great feeling and it really is easy from then on.

It's gutsy to go out there and do a stand up routine. In improv, you have team members that can carry a scene if you are not quite there with it. In stand up, it's you and that is all. Bombing in stand up is one of the worse feelings in the world. Having a great set puts you on a high for days. The payoff is worth it if you can get through that early stage where there are a lot of bad sets.

Take a look at the book in my sources area. It's a great reference to how to structure your comedy and one that has been recommended by countless professional comedians before I finally got it.

Good luck and have fun with it!

Matt

I graduated from college with a degree in theatre. I've worked with an improv troupe in a show they produced a few years back and I've been on stage both in university and professional settings numerous times. I'm not trying to toot my own horn but I just wanted to use that "experience" to back up what I'm saying here.

The stage fright never goes away. The moment that it does is the moment that you know that you shouldn't be a performer anymore. Stage fright is what keeps us on our toes, it's what keeps us real and it's the reason why some of us can do it and the rest of them can't. It's tough at first; your heart is beating so fast you can see your shirt bounce with it and you get all sweaty and worry weather or not that you'll be funny or remember your joke/lines, it's a terrifying feeling. The best thing that you can do for yourself is to keep going at it, roll with the punches and work on improving yourself on stage. The better you get, the more confidant you will appear be.

But the nerves should never go away because that's what keeps you real up there. That's why performing is so hard and at the same time so rewarding. The rush you get from nailing it after your set is what keeps you going back for more.

I say you keep at it, your nerves make you want to be better, use that energy in your performance - don't let it hold you back. People will forget a bad performance when that night is over but they will remember you forever if you crack them up.

I have played the guitar and sang in front of audiences more times than I can remember.

I hate the few hours preceding a show. The buildup to the time when I find myself onstage is a terrible ordeal, and I understand your fears completely.

I have performed more than enough times to know that I never will stop experiencing stage fright before a show. I get to the point when I am so scared, that I would rather just go out there get it over with than spend any more time being nervous. I would rather BOMB than feel so much anxiety.

But, about 30 seconds after I start to perform, it all goes away. I am no longer thinking about the audience. I am thinking about what I am doing, concentrating on my performance.

The best preparation you can have is knowing that once you are out there, the nerves go away because you haven't got time for them. You are too busy focusing on something else.

After a concert, I feel like I just leapt out of a plane and parachuted safely to the ground. I don't even care how I did. I am just glad that it is over, and that I don't feel nervous anymore.

That's when you feel accomplishment, and that is why you keep going back.

When I was a college musician, I actually had a studio class that specifically covered that topic. I never suffered stage fright as bad as some other people in the Music Department. Some of it might be placebo, but in any case, here are some suggestions in that class: Eat a Banana Take a sip of wine (if you're not a minor) Eat chicken/turkey for lunch Meditation/Focus My personal suggestion: Practice and be as prepared as possible for a performance. Know your material inside and out. Mentally go through the entire show--Sing or hum through your songs during the day. If you make a mistake, practice being able to immediately recover gracefully and move on. Most people won't notice a mistake if it is done gracefully.

First and foremost each and everyone who has been infront of an audience at one time had a stage fright once.

Try the follow the simple rules below:

1 Be thoroughly prepared before hand for any topic or any presentation.

2 Make rehearsal before the presentation day, even before the mirror can work alternatively try before your friends at home or at work.

3 Take some water and breath normal before, during the presentation or speech especially if it's very long.

4 seem comfortable, relaxed answering any question from the audience. Do not rush to answer as it mught 'come out' with panic

Try smilling if you think u cannot make it anymore while you are at the front

I have a personal inside look of the performance aspect of your desired profession, and I did have a really bad case of stage fright...Until I started getting compliments from strangers on the streets. I only do musicals at a dinner theater, but people recognized me, and told me how good I was. That was enough to cure me of my stage fright. Trust me, It's all worth it. And make sure you are well prepared and very funny before you get on stage for people other than friends and family. Watch as many professional shows as possible, If those people have made a living doing it, then they obviously have something to offer. Don't be afraid to put yourself out there, someone will love you.

Stage fright is something everyone, even the biggest of stars go through. Some rockstars even have hyperventalation before going on stage because..well..it's scary!

The thing is, you have to remember that if you're confident and you know the material and you've practiced..just do what you gotta do! No one can see nervousness. Have a friend videotape you once, when you go on stage. Make sure you practice and just be normal. Then after the show, watch your video. I did that for speech class, I was so nervous I remember my right leg shaking. But when I watched my video, I didn't look nervous at all. I had remembered and practiced my material and showed alot of confidence that how I delivered my speech overcame my nervousness.

Just practice, be confident, you know your material..and you're not doing this to become the president..so just have fun with it.

Stand up comic with stage fright?! That should be your opening line for your first joke. Seriously, stage fright is easily overcome with practice. The more you are in front of people the easier it gets however, as a former entertainer, singer and musician, I know that if you loose your complete edge, you won't be as good. You need a little bit of that stage fright to get your juices going. The adrenelin is what you need to keep the edge. Look at folks as though they were nude - laugh to yourself and kick the jokes. Also, practice breathing deeply, walk on stage calmly, assess the room and get a feel for your au dience. Make them comfortable and you will find yourself in a more comfortable zone. Read something not relative to your show before you go on - relax and go for it......

I might not have dont stand up comic before, but i have done public speaking on the stage in front of a huge audience before. The best way to overcome stage fright is to face it, practise in front of a group of friends or a smaller crowd, after practising a few times, you will start to feel more confident about yourself and overtime stage fright will be overcome.

My advice to you is to keep staring at a certain person or object which makes you calm during your performance. All the best to you, you can do it!